I was a native of the countryside. Born in a rural village in the mountains of Geochang, I was just a boy who dreamed of becoming a farmer while helping my grandmother with her farm work. Beyond that, I had nothing special about me.
I was happily attending a small branch school in the village, completely unaware of the outside world. Then, I started attending the first high school since the branch school. I loved making friends, and perhaps because of my outgoing personality, my friends approached me without hesitation. And...studying? Honestly, I wasn't interested in studying. But I wasn't the type to deliberately cheat or avoid it; I just tried to avoid being a burden to my friends. I still preferred playing soccer on the lawn with my friends and listening to music on my MP3 player to the boring study routine.
Another thing... I received so many confessions, even though there was absolutely no reason to consider me a man. But I quietly declined, trying to keep my friend from getting hurt as much as possible. Then and now, I've always dreamed of marrying my first love.
Then, the first thing that caught my eye was Yeoju. Yeoju, too, was just an ordinary girl. She wasn't exceptionally pretty or academically gifted. She just had long, straight hair, slightly pinkish skin, and a childlike, innocent smile. That was all. But what does appearance really matter? By then, I was already captivated by Yeoju, and no matter what she did, she seemed the prettiest in the world.
But if I had to pick the heroine's greatest charm, it would be that she wasn't calculating. She wasn't the type to observe someone approaching and rank them, or to rate each person individually. She was just an innocent child who didn't know the ways of the world. I think that's why I found her so lovable, because it overlapped with my own image at the time.
"My lady. My lady."
After I became friends with Yeoju and went to and from school with her, I started to break down more and more. I felt anxious when Yeoju was not around, so I would call out to her several times a day. When I saw a dandelion on the street, I would lean down and blow on it instead of breaking it for fear of hurting the dandelion, and I would chuckle without realizing it.
"Taehyung, look here. It's really pretty in the fog. I thought it was a scene from a movie."
"Yeah. It's pretty."
Yeoju, a woman of extreme sensitivity, couldn't help but exclaim in awe, using every word to describe the beauty of nature she encountered along the way. She would often remark on the beauty of even the dew dripping from a blade of grass, but I couldn't see that. She'd say, "You're the prettiest and cutest. What else could I possibly see?"
"Hey Kim Taehyung! Look at me! I'm really good at riding a bike!"
"Are you just going to lie down and roll around in the fields?"
Eventually, unable to contain my swelling heart, I poured my heart out to Yeoju on a warm summer day. That's how we started dating in our first year of high school, and spending every day with Yeoju made me lose track of time. If you ask who liked each other more, I can confidently say that I liked her by far—no, more than Yeoju could have ever imagined. At that time, 17-year-old Kim Taehyung had no one else in the world but Yeoju, so what's the point of telling her? I don't know if Yeoju knows this.
"My lady."
"Huh?"
"I'm really pretty. Should I introduce you to one? They say it's really pretty at night."
"What? Of course I should tell you! Is there anything else besides the cloud bridge? I know everything about this town..."
"Hehe. Uh. Only I know. You definitely don't know either."
"Wow, awesome. I can look forward to it."
"Let's go tonight. Together."
Growing up at my grandmother's house, I considered the garden in her backyard my playground. A place no one knew about. Like a secret garden in a book, it was secluded and secretive. I took Yeoju to this place, my only hideout.
"Wow...there's a place like this!"
"Yeah. The night sky is really pretty."
"What, why are you the only one who knows about this place?"
"This is my secret space. The female protagonist is the first guest here."
I remember every single detail: the fireflies twinkling in the darkness, the heroine's clear face beneath the soft moonlight, and that hazy atmosphere. She seemed to love this atmosphere, constantly gazing at the round moon, admiring it. At that moment, I was fixated on her. No, I could only see her.
"My lady."
"Huh? Oh, wait a minute. Taehyung, look at those fireflies. They're really pretty how they blink... Ugh."
The heroine. The night sky. The atmosphere. Intoxicated by it all, I ended up giving her a beautiful kiss that night. The heroine, who had been squeaking like a chick, seemed quite surprised by my sudden entrance to her lips, but when I patted her back to assure her it was okay, she closed her eyes and seemed to follow my lead.
That was my first kiss with my first love, Yeoju. My first love. The fact that she stole all my "firsts" was enough reason for me to never forget her.
"......My grandmother is very sick."
"................"
My grandmother's condition had been worsening for some time, and my father decided that we had to move to Seoul so she could receive treatment at a larger hospital. After hearing this shocking news, I cried for days, unable to leave the house even when Yeoju called me. I knew that lashing out at my father would only make things worse when my beloved grandmother was sick, so I did nothing.
Occasionally, I'd hear Yeoju sobbing outside, but I couldn't go outside. Seeing her face made me feel like tears would just flow. The sadness of having all those 17 years of memories disappear in an instant kept me from living a normal life. On the day we were moving, during winter break of my first year of high school, I met Yeoju and said my final goodbye.
"..my lady."
"You know you're really bad."
Phew-
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I really am.."
"..Get out of here. You're a real bad guy."
Another stream of water ran down the heroine's cheek, already stained with tears and snot. Thanks to the umbrella, which had already lost its balance and fallen, the rain that had been falling relentlessly from above her head, along with her tears, splashed onto the floor.
Dark clouds fill the once blue sky, sparrows flee to the distant fields to escape the rain, the quiet sound of rain tickling my ears...
Yeoju was already going through a tough time, so I tried to save face by telling myself not to cry too. But I couldn't help but feel the water welling up in front of my eyes. The cloudy water, obscuring my vision, whether rain or tears, seemed to reflect my own feelings. Yeoju must have felt the same way.
"........I feel sick, hold the umbrella tightly."
"..................."
I forced myself to swallow my tears and forced a bitter smile. I tried my best to protect my throat, trying not to let anyone hear my voice, already choked from crying so much.
"Then I'll go. Eat your meals quickly, and don't ride your bike around like that, or you'll end up losing an arm. Got it?"
"....................."
"Stop crying. Goodbye, heroine."
I picked up the umbrella rolling on the floor and placed it in her hand. I stared at her silently, my eyes filling with her gaze. I stroked her wet hair one last time, then placed my hat on her, kissed her cheek, and left. Only after I wrapped my warm hand around her already shivering face was I able to step out the front door, ensuring she wouldn't linger in any lingering feelings.
The last image of the heroine on the verge of bursting into tears was the last image in my memory, and the last page of my high school days in Geochang.
(This is a real photo of Taehyung from his high school days. Please refer to it.)
) This writing can't get any worse than this~~~~~~hahaha This is the worst piece of writing ever. Every expression is so bad...
)) I think the story will probably be from Taehyung's perspective until Ep 6. I think that if we include some stories from the past, the story between the two will become stronger and readers will feel more immersed...
I would like to thank everyone who read my poorly written writing today.